Steel and Sorrow: Rise of the Mercenary king

Chapter 364: Ending a liability(1)

Chapter 364: Ending a liability(1)

The night was dark, with only the faint glimmer of stars overhead to light the open field. In the distance, 200 horses stood silently, their riders waiting in a tense stillness. The horses snorted softly now and then, their hooves occasionally scuffing the ground, but the scene was otherwise eerily quiet.

At the center of this gathering lay Lord Egil, the commander of the light riders of the White Army. He lounged on his horse, sprawled across the saddle as if he had no care in the world. His posture, almost languid, was a sharp contrast to the watchful readiness of his men.

Egil's eyes were fixed on the night sky, tracing the constellations with a lazy interest. Between his teeth, he chewed on the stem of a wildflower he'd picked earlier in the evening. The sharp, acidic tang of the stem made his mouth water, and every so often, he bit off a piece, rolling it around on his tongue before spitting it out, letting the acidic taste linger on his tongue .

The spit landed with a faint, wet pat on the dry earth below. Egil smirked to himself, finding an odd satisfaction in the bitter taste and the rhythm of his chewing.

The silence stretched on, broken only by the occasional creak of leather saddles and the low shuffle of restless horses. Egil took one last bite of the flower stem, spit out the piece, and let out a quiet sigh, still staring at the stars as if the night were his to command.

"How long is this going to take? Patience is for priests, not soldiers." He shifted slightly on his saddle, craning his neck to glance around the assembly of riders, his second in command Rykio unfortunately was not there to appreciate his joke